Pa. school districts that spend the most (and the least) to educate kids

How much should a school district spend to educate its students? Is there such a thing as too much? What about too little?

It’s a good question and the answer depends on who you ask. There is no simple answer.

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You could simply compare a district’s actual spending on instructional costs to the statewide median of $8,838, according to data from the state Department of Education. Or you could take a wider view, and compare it to the $6,953 national average from the National Center for Educational Statistics.

To be clear, instructional costs are arrived at by stripping away transportation costs, debt service and other ancillary expenses a district incurs. It includes teacher salaries, benefits, classroom supplies and other direct costs associated with educating students.

Or you could compare it to the $9,480 median that the Public Interest Law Center has tabulated as an appropriate per-student amount. A further explanation of how it arrived at this figure is at the bottom of this story but Michael Churchill, of counsel to the law center, said it generally takes into account how well a district's students performed on state exams as well as the added costs associated with educating certain students.

Not everyone, though, is convinced that there is a strong correlation between student performance and per-student spending. Nathan Benefield, vice president and chief operating officer of the conservative-leaning Commonwealth Foundation of Harrisburg, is among them. He believes national and regional per-student spending averages are a better tool for comparisons.

PennLive looked at this data for all 500 school districts and ranked them from highest spending to lowest spending based on data from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

Below we highlight the 30 highest spenders and 30 lowest spenders and compare their per-student instructional spending to the state median and national average. Here is a link where you can look up a district's most recent Pennsylvania School Performance Profile to find out more about how each district's schools are performing.

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Tredyffrin-Easttown School District Facebook page

30. Tredyffrin-Eastttown School District, Chester County

This school district spent $12,202 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $3,364 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,249 more than the national average.

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29. Council Rock School District, Bucks County

This school district spent $12,251 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $3,413 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,298 more than the national average.

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28. Lower Moreland Township School District, Montgomery County

This school district spent $12,261 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $3,423 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,308 more than the national average.

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27. Allegheny Valley School District, Allegheny County

This school district spent $12,380 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $3,542 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,427 more than the national average.

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26. Forest Area School District, Forest County

This school district spent $12,589 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $3,751 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,636 more than the national average.

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Pittsburgh Public Schools website

25. Pittsburgh School District, Allegheny County

This school district spent $12,652 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $3,814 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,699 more than the national average.

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24. Wallingford-Swarthmore School District, Delaware County

This school district spent $12,702 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $3,864 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,749 more than the national average.

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23. Springfield Township School District, Montgomery County

This school district spent $12,753 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $3,915 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,800 more than the national average.

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22. West Greene School District, Greene County

This school district spent $12,843 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,005 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,890 more than the national average.

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21. Marple Newtown School District, Delaware County

This school district spent $12,859 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,021 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $5,906 more than the national average.

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Morrisville Borough School District website

20. Morrisville Borough School District, Bucks County

This school district spent $12,960 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,122 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,007 more than the national average.

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19. Riverview School District, Allegheny County

This school district spent $13,015 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,177 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,062 more than the national average.

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18. Sullivan County School District, Sullivan County

This school district spent $13,183 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,345 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,230 more than the national average.

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17. Kutztown Area School District, Berks County

This school district spent $13,188 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,350 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,235 more than the national average.

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16. Rose Tree Media School District, Delaware County

This school district spent $13,315 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,477 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,362 more than the national average.

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Great Valley School District Facebook page

15. Great Valley School District, Chester County

This school district spent $13,350 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,512 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,397 more than the national average.

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14. Fox Chapel Area School District, Allegheny County

This school district spent $13,495 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,657 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,542 more than the national average.

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13. Colonial School District, Montgomery County

This school district spent $13,700 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,862 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,747 more than the national average.

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12. Quaker Valley School District, Allegheny County

This school district spent $13,704 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,866 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,751 more than the national average.

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11. Upper Merion Area School District, Montgomery County

This school district spent $13,781 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,943 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,828 more than the national average.

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10. Wissahickon School District, Montgomery County

This school district spent $13,794 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $4,956 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,841 more than the national average.

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9. Radnor Township School District, Delaware County

This school district spent $13,882 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $5,044 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $6,929 more than the national average.

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Palisades School District Facebook page

8. Palisades School District, Bucks County

This school district spent $14,207 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $5,369 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $7,254 more than the national average.

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7. Cheltenham School District, Montgomery County

This school district spent $14,370 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $5,532 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $7,417 more than the national average.

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6. Jenkintown School District, Montgomery County

This school district spent $14,876 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $6,038 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $7,923 more than the national average.

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5. Austin Area School District, Potter County

This school district spent $15,255 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $6,517 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $8,402 more than the national average.

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Wilkinsburg School District website

4. Wilkinsburg Borough School District, Allegheny County

This school district spent $15,402 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $6,564 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $8,449 more than the national average.

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3. New Hope-Solebury School District, Bucks County

This school district spent $16,243 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $7,405 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $9,290 more than the national average.

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Lower Merion School District website

2. Lower Merion School District, Montgomery County

This school district spent $17,409 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $8,571 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $10,456 more than the national average.

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1. Bryn Athyn School District, Montgomery County

This school district spent $53,744 to educate each of its students. This district is an outlier because it is unlike any other district in the state. Its student population is so small that it contracts out all of its schooling and educational services to other districts. Still, for comparison sake, it spent $44,906 more on instructional costs than the state median amount and $46,791 more than the national average.

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Now for the low spenders

The 30 school districts in Pennsylvania that spent the least per-student on instructional costs, starting with the 30th lowest and working our way down.

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470. Everett Area School District, Bedford County

This school district spent $7,162 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,676 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $209 more than the national average.

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471. Bedford Area School District, Bedford County

This school district spent $7,153 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,685 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $200 more than the national average.

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Erie School District website

472. Erie City School District, Erie County

This school district spent $7,147 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,691 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $194 more than the national average.

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473. Northern Bedford County School District, Bedford County

This school district spent $7,145 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,693 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $192 more than the national average.

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474. Charleroi School District, Washington County

This school district spent $7,131 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,707 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $178 more than the national average.

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475. Saint Marys Area School District, Elk County

This school district spent $7,120 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,718 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $167 more than the national average.

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Bellwood-Antis School District Facebook page

476. Bellwood-Antis School District, Blair County

This school district spent $7,111 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,727 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $158 more than the national average.

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477. Valley View School District, Lackawanna County

This school district spent $7,094 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,744 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $141 more than the national average.

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478. Carmichaels Area School District, Greene County

This school district spent $7,074 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,764 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $121 more than the national average.

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479. Steelton-Highspire School District, Dauphin County

This school district spent $6,965 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,873 less on instructional costs than the state median amount and $12 more than the national average.

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481. Spring Cove School District, Blair County

This school district spent $6,950 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,888 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $3 less than the national average.

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481. McKeesport Area School District, Allegheny County

This school district spent $6,950 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,888 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $3 less than the national average.

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482. Bermudian Springs School District, Adams County

This school district spent $6,930 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,908 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $23 less than the national average.

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483. Mifflin County School District, Mifflin County

This school district spent $6,911 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,927 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $42 less than the national average.

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484. Lebanon School District, Lebanon County

This school district spent $6,902 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,936 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $51 less than the national average.

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485. Greater Nanticoke Area School District, Luzerne County

This school district spent $6,885 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,953 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $68 less than the national average.

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486. Palmyra Area School District, Lebanon County

This school district spent $6,870 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $1,968 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $83 less than the national average.

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487. Southern Huntingdon County, Huntingdon County

This school district spent $6,630 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,087 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $202 less than the national average.

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488. Carbondale Area School District, Lackawanna County

This school district spent $6,727 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,111 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $226 less than the national average.

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489. Chestnut Ridge School District, Bedford County

This school district spent $6,693 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,111 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $226 less than the national average.

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Shamokin Area Elementary School Facebook page

490. Shamokin Area School District, Northumberland County

This school district spent $6,642 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,196 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $311 less than the national average.

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491. Huntingdon Area School District, Huntingdon County

This school district spent $6,630 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,208 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $323 less than the national average.

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492. Claysburg-Kimmel School District, Blair County

This school district spent $6,586 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,252 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $367 less than the national average.

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493. Mount Carmel Area School District, Northumberland County

This school district spent $6,582 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,256 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $371 less than the national average.

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494. Waynesboro Area School District, Franklin County

This school district spent $6,554 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,284 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $399 less than the national average.

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Reading School District Facebook page

495. Reading School District, Berks County

This school district spent $6,534 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,304 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $419 less than the national average.

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496. Tyrone Area School District, Blair County

This school district spent $6,498 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,340 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $455 less than the national average.

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497. Altoona Area School District, Blair County

This school district spent $6,429 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,410 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $525 less than the national average.

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Juniata County School District website

498. Juniata County School District, Juniata County

This school district spent $6,395 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,443 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $558 less than the national average.

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499. Hazleton Area School District, Luzerne County

This school district spent $6,351 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,487 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $602 less than the national average.

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500. Mount Union Area School District, Huntingdon County

This school district spent $6,324 to educate each of its students. For comparison, it spent $2,514 less per-student on instructional costs than the state median amount and $629 less than the national average.

The instructional cost was calculated based on "weighted average daily membership." That is different than using a student headcount. Instead, it weighs costs based on grade level since it costs more to educate a high school student than it does a half-day kindergarten student. A half-time kindergarten student is .5, full-time kindergarten and elementary students are 1, and a high school student is 1.36.

The Public Interest Law Center arrived at what it considers to be the amount needed to educate students by looking at the median of the per-student cost spent by districts that performed in the top 50 percent on all three Pennsylvania System of School Assessments in math, reading and science. It also took into account factors that can drive up the cost of educating students, namely number of students living in poverty and English language learners.